The solid copper armour that plays between tradition and modernity due to its biomorphic form,enwraps the green heart and protects the peripheral passageways whose adjacent facades are also covered in a vegetal skin to better integrate with this singular space.

The “hull” formed by copper scales, green roofs and wood slats with pierced openings, plays with the light thus making the building become alive, as shown by our heliodon study. In this mineral world of la Croix Blanche, this building offers a different and living interpretation, in harmony with the seasons due to its “green heart”.

The singular reading of the building, in breaking with its neighbours, allows the identification of this programme as unique.

This atypical building allows visitors/clients to grasp its concept differently and to assimilate it. The project corresponds to an “active and programmatic” stratification, with a unique and exclusive interpretation.

A contemporary building which gives answers to a new demand in the area.

This building, this facility, appears as a pioneer in the urban renewal of la Croix Blanche by introducing notions of a humanized scale. By its architecture and siting at the entrance of this zone, it also has a specific vocation to become the symbol of the commercial area which will guide car drivers to la Croix Blanche, assuming the role of the lighthouse… Its philosophy being to comply with two precepts:

Simplicity and Functionality

[ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT]

The project strives to achieve and place in value biodiversity through the use of different strategies:

The valorisation of the hill and the establishment of pedagogical actions (establishment of nest boxes, pedagogical circuits, etc.).

The choice of types of plants, allowing for a respectful handling and maintenance of the environment.

- Mixed and stratified planting beds (herbaceous, shrubs, and trees) and the diversity of the aromatic plants used.

The choice of plants is motivated by their form and aesthetics, but also by the fact they should be somewhat rustic therefore requiring less maintenance. There is also a proposal for the differentiated management of the plants, allowing for the caretaking of each space while minimizing the impact on the environment.

The following points are to be respected:

- Low consumption of water;

- Prevention of accidental pollution;

- Strict use of phyto-sanitary products.

An automated watering system is not required, as run-off water recovery systems paired with hydro retention strategies should provide all the plant’s immediate water needs. This biodegradable retainer (a polymer that increases the soil’s capacity to retain both water and soil nutrients), when in contact with water, absorbs and transforms it into a gel substance that provides a slow release to the plants. This system allows for the optimization of resources as well as the development of the plants roots.

The natural mineral and hydric resources of the ground are thus notably improved.

The advantage is double: the project becomes simultaneously more economic and ecological as fewer elements are leached out with the water whose quality is much improved.

Our proposal represents our will to break with the « traditional reading» of commercial areas, while respecting their inherent principles while applying a general notion of ergonomics and simplicity.

The GREEN HEART thus appears as a commercial solution, offering a high quality green and architectural space while highlighting the positioning of its visitors, thereby allowing itself to appropriate its central, natural and inhabited space.

ARCHITECTURAL ASSESSMENT]

Cœur Vert- Ste Geneviève des Bois _ La Croix Blanche

In a peripheral/urban context, located just beyond the limits of the second ring-road of the Paris region (Francilienne) and at the entrance of one of the most active shopping areas of Ile de France, the proposed site is both constrained and advantageous, thereby requiring a balanced strategy to resolve its geographic situation.

This multi-purpose project presents a commercial programme situated in a consolidated zone, the main intention being the infusion of an identity as well as a commercial and human appeal to our project.

The programme, its diversity and the architectural singularity of the object should be the ingredients for a successful project, matching the site with its issues.

[ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN AND PROCESS]

Like any other commercial project, the elements of the programme such as the parking lot, the private areas linked to the commercial spaces, pedestrian and cars flows required careful treatment. All in the quest for a maximum visibility and legibility.

This equation is even more complex as it is situated in an area with multiple constraints: limited by the Francilienne highway, one of the major circulation axes, with the height of most neighbouring buildings reaching 15 metres.

[PROGRAMMATIC STRATIFICATION]

The goal is to suggest the most intense programmatic and commercial offer possible within the buildable volume defined by the urban codes.

The major elements of our programme are the following: a main access, 2 parking levels, a singular garden and a circuit composed of different types of commercial spaces which should be given a similar significance.

To achieve this, the project opts for a programmatic stratification using the whole of the plot, with setbacks from the conventional commercial typologies of its neighbours.

This stratification and the resultant form allow us to resolve this complex equation as well as to modify the commercial scale of the project.

Cars (vs) Pedestrians:

The parking lot must be Visible and Legible before accessing the commercial enclosure.

Our first stratum will be then devoted to the parking of the vehicles. The “Croix Blanche” area is a huge business district, and the majority of the “visitor-clients” only travel from a business area to another by this means of transport. It is therefore important that not only the parking but its accesses also should be visible, its function legible to everyone.

Its simple and dense geometric form is focused around the vertical communication nucleus, offering to the visitor a feeling of proximity, ease and immediacy. Everything is near.

The second stratum will be devoted to the tenant spaces. This area is “cut topographically” from the parking lot, and offers one of the only pedestrian zones of la Croix Blanche. The pedestrian who finds himself limited in his movements in other sites, encounters in our project an unconstrained space, without any security barriers and free to follow his own circuit; children also find a new and visually challenging space to stimulate them.

These two stratums must be linked neatly and strongly.

This union, intercommunication and articulation could not be summed up with a simple system of vertical connections.

The area now humanised, transforms this barren site into a thriving space.

The inclusion of vegetation represents the connection between the different stratums and allows for the creation of this topographical unity.

Unlike a residual landscaping treatment, our goal was to mark this visible and physical connection as the heart of our commercial project.

The simple garden becomes a forest, an oasis, a “green heart”.

Our programme is articulated around this Green Island, offering an uncharacteristic commercial/pedestrian progression in the zone of la Croix-Blanche. In the heart of the commercial building, this flourishing island, a park in relief that allows the joining of different passageways, kiosks and restaurant areas, all the while welcoming and promoting free-air sports activities and recreation for children.